Choices Series
by anaknisatanas
Summary: The final battle and the events leading up to it and after it. A perspective from all sides. Notes: poem in 1st chapter is mine. Warrior's Oath in 2nd chapter is mine. In chapter 4 the song Innocent belongs to Fuel. Poemsong in chapter 5 belongs to me
1. Choices

  
  
_Everyone will tell you that I'm certainly no saint._  
  
Draco Malfoy was crouched in front of a fallen figure. He looked into the figure's face, offering no words to the fallen. He never wasted his words and certainly wasn't planning to on a battlefield.  
  
Most of those on the 'other side' were fallen like this one. But they did not once have such a large impression on Draco. Those left standing were on the side of Light, and he supposed that he was one of them as much as he could be. But unlike many who fought he did not do so because it was right, he did so for revenge and for a vision that he had.  
  
_I hate withouth malice,  
I love only to hate._  
  
The fallen figure was his father. A man who was so smart and cunning, brought so low by his only heir, his only son. Somehow it was rather fitting that Draco had delivered this blow to a man he had once respected and loved above all others.  
  
But love is closely related to hate. And love can be used as a mask to that hate. But he did not hate out of anger or spite. His hate was pure, one of the few things that could be called pure in relation to Draco Malfoy.  
  
"Why?" His fallen father asked, confusion clouding his Malfoy silver eyes.  
  
"You should know why," Draco betrayed nothing to this dying man, not even his hate. "If nothing else you should at least know why."  
  
Lucius Malfoy let out a gasp. Draco could see he was in pain. He did nothing to ease it. He did not bother wasting breath to call a healer. He wanted to witness his father's dying breath and he wanted him to feel pain. But, he would answer.  
  
"You joined a madman," Draco said calmly. "And you were stupid in your choices after that. I don't want what you want."  
  
_And I'll never let anything penetrate my mask,  
I'm a perfect imitation of the Malfoy's past._  
  
"What are you going to do when I'm dead?" Lucius asked, breath becoming shallow.  
  
"What else?" Draco looked him in the eye. "Rule the Slytherins."  
  
"You don't have it in you," His father gasped out as another spasm of pain wracked his broken body.  
  
"I do," Draco was unruffled by his father's words. "I'm more of a Malfoy than you. And I know what it means to have that name, more than you ever did. You're a disappoint to me Lucius."  
  
Draco was pleased to see his father look briefly disappointed. But he was a Malfoy and his pleasure was not shown or voiced in any way. He maintained his indifference, even his silver eyes held a harsh indifference. A perfect copy, a perfect fighter.  
  
He had no qualms about killing the man he called father. Lucius had given up that right when he had killed Pansy and Blaise. He had given up that right when he sacrificed Narcissa to the Dark Lord. He had given up that right when he had joined the Dark Lord before Draco was even born, it had just taken those three deaths for his eyes to open and see what he had ignored.  
  
_It's more than just upbringing,  
Or even the weight and price of blood,  
It has to do with leadership and fellowship._  
  
Draco silently admitted that Lucius had been a good leader, as much as that was worth. But he lacked fellowship among his Slytherins. Something Draco did not lack in any of the younger generations.  
  
And naturally most of them had followed his lead when he had defied his father. It was more than just his upbringing or his blood that had made him what he was now. He was a Malfoy. He had made that name count for more than darkness and evil and he would see that the name did not fall to evil and ugliness again. The dark was not always evil, but Lucius had been unable to differentiate between the two. A waste of what had held the promise of a good man.  
  
"You know," Draco said conversationally. "You sullied the name Malfoy. You were not only a disappointment to me but to the name and meaning as well."  
  
Lucius said nothing.  
  
Draco continued to maintain eye contact with the dying.  
  
_I'll let you die in battle without another thought._  
  
Draco Malfoy watched as the shadow of a great but evil and cowardly man seeped away into nothingness.  
  
"Maybe if you hadn't killed them it might have ended differently for you," Draco smiled, just barely. "For anyone else would have at least spared you of this pain. But I find that I enjoy your pain Lucius. Before you die I'll tell you this, you once were a great man. But you're a coward now."  
  
"I didn't expect this of you," Lucius whispered. "I never saw."  
  
"No you didn't," Draco said in all seriousness. "But it is not betrayl, merely righting old wrongs. You deserve death now Lucius, anything less I cannot give you."  
  
"Wouldn't ask it of you," His father managed a slight smile. "The Malfoy name is yours now. It will be judged by what you do and who you are."  
  
"I also thought you should know," Draco continued. "I'm married. To a Muggle, Hermione Granger. And I'm going to be a father. If you can't give me your blessing I understand."  
  
_I won't give forgiveness unless you beg me,  
And I won't say I'm sorry for anything._  
  
"You have it," Lucius said carefully. "Can I have your forgiveness?"  
  
"You can have it," Draco finally said. "But I still hate you."  
  
The sun beat down heavily. The smell of blood and death and decay was burning in his nose and throat. It was rank and vile but he endured it. He had to see his father die.  
  
Draco watched impassively as Lucius Malfoy, his father and faithful servant to the Dark Lord, draw in one last gasping breath. The body stilled and still he waited. The temperature of the body cooled and he stood.  
  
He looked back and on the other side of the field the survivors were gathering. Draco looked down at his father's body before turning resolutely and walking away. He had made his choices, he could live with that.  
  
_Choices have been made by greater men,  
And lesser men as well.  
But I know that as a Malfoy the line has already been drawn and I won't go back._


	2. Actions and Consequences

Harry was the first one to come around, Ron never really did. He still slighted Malfoy at every turn, still taunted him and demeaned him when he could.  
  
Ron was smart enough not to do such things around Hermione, who was married to Draco Malfoy, but he still did those things around Harry. Harry was more forgiving than Hermione and more understanding about such things but it was beginning to irritate the Boy Who Lived more and more.  
  
Harry saw Draco every day. He worked with him on battle training and fighting and on Potions. He spent plenty of time with Hermione going over Charms and Transfigurations. He brushed up on subjects he had been fair in but not adept. And above all else he spent less time with Ron.  
  
It was sad to think that he had outgrown his best friend. But he had and during war was not the time to reminenesce or go through all the what-ifs. Harry had a task to complete, killing the Dark Lord.  
  
True Ron was a decent Auror but Harry was not. Harry was simply the Boy Who Lived.  
  
"Draco," Harry nodded to the blond.  
  
"Harry," The blond Slytherin sized him up quickly. "How're the Charms coming along?"  
  
"Better," Harry smiled. "How have you been Draco? I haven't had the chance to talk to you for a long time."  
  
"Well enough," Draco looked over the vast expanse of land in Northern England. "I'll face my father soon enough."  
  
"Hey Malfoy," Ron's voice rang out, shattering the slightly friendly air. "What the hell do you think you're doing around Harry? Careful there mate, he might slip a knife in your back if you're not careful."  
  
"Ron," Harry stared at the read-head. "Not now."  
  
Thankfully Ron Weasely knew better than to argue with Harry when he used that tone of voice. He shot daggers at Malfoy with his glare though. Harry gave the Malfoy heir an apologetic shrug of his shoulders before determinedly steering Ron away from what was sure to be another victory to Draco. He had no desire to once again listen to Ron groan about how unfair Draco was when they fought, the Slytherin was anything but unfair.  
  
The next day the battle raged. He managed to kill Voldemort, just barely. A few smaller, but no less important fights, raged on around him. Harry turned away from Ron and Pettigrew and found himself mesmerized by the graceful battle between Draco and Lucius, son and father. And finally Draco yelled, "Ungarn Tötem" and ancient German curse that both of them had discovered just last week. He watched, rooted to the ground, as Lucius Malfoy fell and hit the earth.  
  
Harry knew that he was not dead. Ungarn Tötem was not meant to kill right away, it took several long and agonizing minutes depending on how much power your adversary possessed at the time you cursed them. It was a curse that could be removed, a curse that one could survive from it the caster removed it.  
  
Harry knew that Draco would not remove it. No matter what words Lucius spoke, or what Draco felt, the curse would not be removed. He knew Draco, as well as anyone other than his wife was allowed to know. He knew his weaknesses and strengths like his own. One knows their enemies and one knows their war partner as well as themself or death is certain.  
  
Harry and Draco were willing to give up whatever pride they had to live. Harry watched as the Slytherin knelt beside his fallen father. He knew that they were having a silent conversation, he would not begrudge Draco Malfoy of that or of watching his father die.  
  
Carefullly he made his way through the aftermath of the final battle. Through the blood soaked ground, the lifeless corpses strewn about. He made his way to the small gathering of forces from the light.  
  
His keen green eyes searched carefully for Ron and found him getting checked over by a Mediwitch that Poppy knew. He stood waiting by Minerva McGonnagal for the others to make their way over. He stood waiting for his partner, Draco.  
  
"Hey Harry," Ron called out.  
  
"Not now Ron," Harry waved a hand in his direction, eyes still riveted on the scene before him.  
  
He could almost hear what Draco and his father were saying to each other. He could almost see Lucius' confused look at some of Draco's statements. He knew Draco would forgive his father if he asked it, he also knew that he would still hate him.  
  
Hate born of love or love born of hate was stronger and more complicated than any could fathom. Draco and Hermione were a case of the latter. Harry himself understood this for had it not been for Lucius Malfoy, Pansy Parkinson might still live. Were it not for Lucius Malfoy many others might still have lived. Even though Pansy's death weighed heavily upon them he could not begrudge Draco his revenge on the father who had betrayed everything to him. Harry may have loved a Slytherin but Draco would be able to extract that revenge more perfectly then Harry, and he knew it and acquiesed to it.  
  
It was what Ron did not understand. It was why Ron was often left on the edge of things over the past year. Ron loved his family, he loved Lavynder Brown, he loved Hogwarts. He loved those that were familiar to him. His love was safe, his choices were safe and predictable. Harry, Draco and Hermione did not love those familiar, their choices were risks. Risks that had to be taken, ones they would suffer the consequences of in years to come.  
  
He felt the sun beat mercilessly down upon him, felt the stench of blood and death assail his nose. He could almost taste the scorched flesh of the fallen in his mouth the smell was so thick.  
  
Finally Draco stood and cam over to where Harry was waiting. Thankfully Hermione was unable to fight outright due to her pregnancy.  
  
"So Ferret," Ron said from right behind Harry's left shoulder. "Have you come to declare yourself the new Dark Lord?"  
  
"Ron," Harry said clenching his fists together.  
  
Draco said nothing.  
  
"You only married Hermione so you could infect her with your spawn," Ron continued ignoring Harry's warning. "You're a Death Eater, Ferret. A killer."  
  
Calmly Harry turned and punched him in the jaw. Ron dropped to the ground, startled more than hurt.  
  
"Draco," Harry turned to the blond. "Please accept my apologies. Let's go now."  
  
"You're taking sides with the Dark now Harry?" Ron cried.  
  
"You're too biased to even see all that Draco's done for the Light, for me and Hermione," Harry was seething now. "I won't put up with it anymore Ron. I can't. He's my friend as much as Hermione is."  
  
"And you're my friend as much as Hermione," Draco said to the Man Who Destroyed Voldemort. "As close as a twin."  
  
The two clasped hands.  
  
_"Vows are broken  
Forged anew.  
Lifes ambition  
Won true.  
Reactions and  
Consequences.  
Vows made in secret,  
In the open,  
In silence or aloud.  
Protect my kith and kin.  
The one who holds my hand  
Is the one I trust the most  
Let not this vow be unbroken  
Or unmade or reforged.  
We swear readily  
A Warriors Sacred Oath._  
  
The chant was spoken by both Harry and Draco in perfect timing with each other. A Warriors Oath once sworn was more binding than almost any other, even a soul oath. If one party was not true the pain the Oathbreaker felt was excruiating before death finally came. Both knew this and accepted it.  
  
Harry had a brother in arms, more of a brother now than Ron.  
  
He turned to look at Ron who lay still on the ground. The red-head turned away and Harry only shook his head. He knew better than Ron ever would, every action had its consequences.


	3. Written In Blood

Very few can bond in such a way. You might wish to know who I'm speaking of, but we'll get to that later.  
  
The only people who can succeed in being so close are those who go through the same experiences, in war. It's a hard time, dark and full of death and blood. We all knew that when we finally joined sides but we still weren't prepared for what would eventually happen.  
  
My name is Hermione Granger. And I was friends with Pansy Parkinson and Blaise Zabini. I'm married to Draco Malfoy and still friends with Harry Potter, the Man Who Triumphed.  
  
The five of us had a very close bond. Harry and I have always been friends with Ron but sometimes he can be very childish. We didn't have the time to indulge in him or his games. We put it off to him trying to take the tension out of the whole war and everything. But he wasn't in it the way we were.  
  
We'd been out of Hogwarts for nearly four years. Harry and I had been fighting and helping Dumbledore right when we had graduated. Ron had gone off and taken Auror training, and there's nothing wrong with that.  
  
It was around that time the five of us started working together, three Slytherins and two Gryffindors. Draco Malfoy had made a stand in his last year of Hogwarts. And his childhood friend Pansy and her on and off lover Blaise followed in his wake. Dumbledore put the five of us together. We trained day and night, with him, Snape, McGonnagal. Anyone who was talented at anything came and put us through tests and drills.  
  
We were forced to either build a bond or fail. Slytherins don't fail and Gryffindors refuse to back down when their pride and sense of justice has been wronged. Dumbledore was smarter than we had given him credit for at the time, he seemed to know that it would work out while the rest of us couldn't possibly see how it would. But it did work out. Pansy and Harry became very close. They're bond was strong, almost as strong as her's and Blaise's.  
  
With Pansy and Harry it was like they were one. Like siamese twins or maybe an extension of the other. Trust was there in spades. And there was love too, but there was love between all of us. For the first year we didn't have anytime to ourselves, we were always together and that made the bond we all shared that much stronger.  
  
Draco and I came together that year. So did Blaise and Pansy, this time not always breaking it off and then getting back together. There were the two couples and Harry. Harry didn't mind though. He was too busy training all the time. While the rest of us occasionally got breaks, Harry included, he never took much time for himself. He devoted everything he had into studying and practising. He knew that in order to win he had to be the best. Luck and the sword of Gryffindor weren't going to save him everytime he went out into the fray against Voldemort and his followers. Somehow we all knew that but it was just never said. It made it easier to deal with.  
  
Flashback  
  
"Harry," Pansy said with an amused smile on her face. "come back to us. You're zoning out again. What was it this time?"  
  
"Just thinking," Harry mumbled.  
  
"Have a headache from over using your brain yet Potter?" Malfoy asked smirking.  
  
"No," Harry smiled back at him. "Have a hero complex yet Malfoy?"  
  
"You wish," The other shot back.  
  
"Boys," I interjected. "We've got to work this out. You can have time making fun of each other later. We need to learn this new spell."  
  
"I know it already Hermione," Harry said quietly.  
  
"You idiot," Pansy and Draco said in unison and Draco continued on. "That spell is supposed to be done with two people for a reason Potter. The amount of power it takes is too large for one person to control safely."  
  
"Voldemort can do it on his own," Harry blinked at him, green eyes bright and beautiful without the glasses. "I need to be able to do everything he can do. Why do you think I always practice?"  
  
No one said anything but Blaise always put in his two cents.  
  
"It's logical," Blaise spoke softly. "But next time at least have someone with you who can jump in in case something goes wrong. Pansy would never forgive you if she lost her brother."  
  
"I'll try," Harry looked Blaise in the eye.  
  
End Flashback  
  
Ron wasn't around much, he was busy with Auror training like I said. And he didn't like the Slytherins at all. He couldn't get over the past. To him Draco will always be some evil little boy who taunts others and calls them Mudbloods. But we all changed, Ron just couldn't let go of the past.  
  
So while we exchanged letters there was always that distance. And Harry and I tried to breech in the ways we knew how but it just never worked. Eventually we decided that there wasn't a whole lot that we could do to help Ron see and so we pretty much stopped trying. We didn't have the time to hold his hand or cover up his animosity for him.  
  
Eventually Draco and I got engaged. So did Blaise and Pansy. They married about two years after we graduated. They were great together. And Harry still fit right in with us. It was strange in that way. But Draco and Pansy had 'adopted' him as they liked to say. He had a brother and a sister now. Pansy even went and had them do a special binding spell.  
  
Pansy and Harry could almost talk to each other and feel each other's presences in their minds and sometimes see through the other's eyes. Draco nad Harry could share power and they always seemed to know where the other was and what they felt. The bonds were strong between those three.  
  
And one day Pansy and Blaise went to Blaise's house to see his parents. Blaise's parents had said they were on Dumbledore's side. We should have known better. But they had welcomed all of us in their home over the past three and a half years since we had graduated. So none of us thought anything of it when Blaise and Pansy went over to visit over Christmas holiday's. Especially because they wanted to tell Blaise's parents the good news.  
  
Pansy was pregnant.  
  
So they went. And they never came back.  
  
Harry was asleep when it happened. But he saw everything through her eyes. I think that it'll always be with him. And Draco felt it. I don't know which is worse. But it cemented something between Draco and Harry, something that not even I was a part of. I don't mind though, I know Draco still loves me but he and Harry are close in a way that I'm not.  
  
Flashback  
  
Harry came running into our room. Draco sat bolt up-right in bed beside me.  
  
"Don't turn on the light 'Mione," Harry rasped out. "Just, don't."  
  
"Oh God," Draco moaned. "Can you feel her?"  
  
"No," Harry whispered sounding so very young and afraid. "I can feel here."  
  
Draco wordlessly held out his arms and Harry climbed onto the bed. They held each other, sobbing and speaking and finally I was able to start piecing together the story.  
  
Pansy and Blaise were over at Blaise's parents. Blaise's parents had decided to join Voldemort's side a few months back. To show their loyalty they invited Blaise and his young wife over to die.  
  
"Draco," Harry cried. "It's your dad. It's your dad who's cutting open Pansy!"  
  
"It hurts," Draco screamed. "Stop it!"  
  
"He's pulling out her baby," Harry was sobbing now. "He's.....he's...."  
  
"No more Harry," Draco was able to sooth because Pansy had gone numb from loss of blood. "Just try to relax."  
  
But Harry couldn't relax. He still was seeing through Pansy's eyes. She was sill alive. And he saw everything that Lucius did. He even saw the spell that Lucius wrote in blood, the runes that were on the wall. Pansy was able to 'tell' him through the bond that she was staying alive as long as she could because she knew that Lucius was doing some spell using them and she had to stay alive so that Harry could see and warn us. But she couldn't feel anything anymore. She'd lost too much blood and the trauma to her body was too great so her nervous system just shut down because it was too much to handle. But she stayed alive. To protect us. And Harry finally recognized the spell. He was able to send her his love, and Draco's. And she died. She died just after Lucius apparated away. Blaise died too. And the nameless baby.  
  
Lucius had thought that by killing Pansy and Blaise he would weaken us. But he didn't. It only made us fight and try harder because we were more determined than ever to bring him and his down. A few months later I became pregnant and knew that I couldn't fight in the final battle but that didn't mean that I couldn't help my new husband and best friend prepare.  
  
I tested Charms, Hexes and Curses on them. I made up new drills for them to run through on the battle field. And I nurtured their anger and their wills.  
  
Ron stopped by shortly after Pansy, Blaise and the baby's death. He didn't understand, mostly because he didn't want to try. He was angry that Harry was more upset over their death's than he had been over Percy's. Ron still doesn't understand and I've pretty much given up hope that he ever will.  
  
Harry killed Voldemort in the final battle. Draco killed his father and made sure he suffered.  
  
I'm glad they both did. I'm glad that Draco killed Lucius. I'm glad that Harry killed Tom.  
  
Draco and Harry are still bonded. They still miss Pansy but I think that Harry misses her a little more. Her presence doesn't linger in his mind anymore. He can't see through her eyes.  
  
The two of them offered to re-do the bond with me. But I couldn't bring myself to agree just then. That was something they shared with Pansy. Maybe in a few years I'll be able to but not now, not when her memory is so close with all of us.  
  
It's been a year. I had a healthy baby boy and his name is Zachary Dimitrius Draconis Malfoy. The three of us live together at Malfoy Manor now that the repairs are all done. Harry and Fluer Delacor are becoming close. She helped our little group out a lot over the near four years we were all together. She visits often. Maybe someday she'll join us here on a more permanent basis. I know Draco agrees with me on that.  
  
And maybe the four of us can bond and really start to heal.


	4. Innocent

**from the diaries of Pansy Parkinson**  
  
During our final year at Hogwarts a very unusual alliance was formed. It was unusual because this alliance was between Slytherins and Gryffindors. Three Slytherins and two Gryffindors if you really had to know.  
  
There was me, Draco and Blaise from Slytherin House and Hermione Granger and Harry Potter from Gryffindor House. During our Seventh Year Draco declared an end to the hostilities and Harry naturally followed suit. That isn't to say that everything was nice between us. There were those from both Houses who kept up the bitter fights but the five of us were much more realistic about it all.  
  
Draco and Harry had been meeting in an old abandoned classroom to discuss "The Voldemort Problem" as the Ministry dubbed it. And slowly the rest of us were dragged into it. We didn't meet often but often enough that we were willing to stand up for one another in the halls or in classes.  
  
**reality**  
  
"Hey Mudblood," Millicent Bolstrude called out loudly to Hermione who was walking through the dungeons. "Are you looking for trouble? Or do you just want a good beating?"  
  
"Ah," Hermione said coolly. "So those are your perversions Bolstrude. Never would have guessed in a million years."  
  
Millicent pulled out her wand, prepared to curse or threaten Hermione.  
  
Pansy Parkinson stepped smoothly out of an empty classroom she had been waiting in for Hermione. She smiled at the girl before carefully making her way up the wall towards Millicent.  
  
"Now, now Milli," Pansy spoke softly. "You wouldn't want to go and do anything stupid, would you?"  
  
"Stay out of this Parkinson," Millicent glared at the blond Slytherin girl. "This has nothing to do with you. I caught the Mudblood here trespassing."  
  
"But she wasn't," Pansy thoughtfully tapped her wand against her chin. "I invited her down here Bolstrude. You're being rude to my guest. I can't allow that to go unpunished if you take this to the next level. You know that as well as anyone around here. Now apologize for your base language dear."  
  
Millicent glared and it was clear to Pansy that she was thinking hard about whether or not she would be able to get a curse off with Pansy standing there at the ready. Pansy smiled annoyingly. It was so much fun to play the stupider Slytherins off of her little lies. And it was even more amusing to watch them try to outsmart her. She was the smartest Slytherin female, Millicent didn't have a prayer of measuring up no matter how hard she tried. Pansy gave the larger girl a glare from her winter blue eyes and Millicent slowly lowered her wand seeing defeat there. Everyone in Slytherin knew better than to piss off Pansy. She always remembered and she always took revenge for more than the offense was worth.  
  
"I'm sorry for my rude language," Millicent bit out, her face twisting into one of extreme distaste.  
  
"That's good," Pansy said. "Now move along."  
  
**diary excerpts from Pansy Parkinson**  
  
During the first year of training Draco and I, we had grown up together, and Harry formed a close bond. We were never lovers but we had that closeness and that degree of comfort around each other.  
  
We have what many people call 'war bonds'. It means that we trust each other implicitly and we will remain that close no matter how much time or distance comes between us. It's nice to know that we'll always have each other. Nicer still that we've actually bonded magically.  
  
I can 'speak' to Harry without words and with Draco I can do the same. But together we can pick up on feelings of each other and where we are in proximity to one another. It's nice being this close.  
  
**a little over two years later, diary of Pansy Parkinson**  
  
I'm so excited! I'm going to have a baby. I can't fight in the final battle or in any of the other battles but I'll still help them plan and train.  
  
Blaise said that we will live close to Hermione and Draco when the war is over. He says that Harry can move in with us because we'll live in a mansion. I want to have five children. I wonder what Blaise would say about that? I can't wait until my baby is born!  
  
But I'm not stupid. I know that this war isn't over. These hormones must be getting to me more than I thought. But it doesn't matter if I write that down in here. No one will ever read it unless I die. And if I do die only Draco and Harry will be able to get into it. Boys, if I am dead please look after my baby. If it's a boy name him Gerick Kristoff Zabini but if she is a girl name her Teresa Carmelina Zabini.  
  
**one month later, diary of Pansy Parkinson**  
  
We're leaving for Blaise's parents house for Winter Holiday's. We'll be gone for a week there but things have been quiet and everyone has assured us that they'll be able to manage without us. I bought Harry and Draco matching medallions, I hope they like them. And I got Hermione several rare Charms texts.  
  
I hope that Blaise's parents will be excited about the baby when we tell them Christmas morning. Blaise is thrilled to be going home with this news. I'm glad to see him so happy.  
  
**what happened at Blaise's parents House**  
  
"Mother," Blaise said with deceptive calmness. "Where is my wife?"  
  
"Why she's downstairs," Mrs. Zabini smiled at her son. "Where she's supposed to be."  
  
"What have you done to her?" Blaise glared at his mother.  
  
"I haven't done anything to her," Mrs. Zabini glared.  
  
"Petrifi-" Blaise began.  
  
"Schlaf Mobilis," Blaise heard his father say before he could get the curse out.  
  
He instantly fell asleep.  
  
**down in the basement**  
  
Pansy watched helplessly bound to the chair both magically and physically. There was nothing she could do to help Blaise who was brought in magically by his father. She glared at him with her winter blue eyes but he would not meet her gaze. Mr. Zabini bound his son in the same way he had bound her. Pansy waited until they were left alone.  
  
_Say did  
You know where I lie  
Gently I go into that good night_  
  
"Blaise," She called out keeping her voice both level and calm. "Blaise, are you awake?"  
  
"Pansy," Blaise lifted his head, squinting at the bright lights. "Are you ok? Is everything ok?"  
  
"I'm fine Blaise," Pansy said.  
  
"I'm so sorry Pansy," Blaise whispered. "I didn't know, didn't think--"  
  
"None of us did Blaise," Pansy spoke softly. "It's all right. I love you Blaise."  
  
"I love you Pansy," Blaise's voice was rough with emotion. "So much."  
  
Pansy used her bond and woke Harry up. She roused him more to wakefulness. She would need him as a witness.  
  
Lucius strode through the door and she knew that Harry was wide awake now. She made sure that he 'saw' what she did. And she made sure that he knew Blaise's parents were traitors.  
  
An icy fear gripped her stomach but she remained calm and indifferent on the outside. Pansy could act as well as the rest of them and she planned to use those skills here and now. She had nothing left with which to defend herself and she refused to give Lucius the satisfaction. Pansy looked down at him which was quite impressive since she was bound in a chair and he towered above her but she was able to manage it well. She could tell that Lucius didn't like it one bit.  
  
"You know Pansy dear," Lucius drawled stroking the side of her face. "You shouldn't have betrayed our Lord. Did you really think that you would escape punishment? Did you really think that a mere boy could defeat our Lord?"  
  
"He hasn't won yet has he Lucius?" Pansy shot back coolly.  
  
Lucius raised his cane and struck her in the chin with it. Her head snapped back painfully but she was able to keep her cry of pain from escaping. She would not give him the satisfaction of knowing how much he had hurt her. She glared up at him through her winter blue eyes, cold and harsh like the unforgiving ice tundra's.  
  
"You should watch what you say Pansy," Lucius said.  
  
Pansy made sure that everything was reaching Harry. She felt a warm flood of strength from Draco and reassurance from Harry. They let her know that they were with her and it helped somewhat.  
Lucius walked over to where Blaise was.  
  
"What were thinking of Blaise?" Lucius asked him. "Did you honestly think that you would win?"  
  
Blaise said nothing.  
  
Lucius looked over at Pansy and she knew right then than he thought she was the weak link. It was instinctual. And she knew that he would kill Blaise before her to see if it would get her to talk. He hoped to get information from her. She would show him that she was not the weak link, she would tell him nothing. Pansy knew that she and Blaise would die here today, even if they told Lucius everything they knew. She wasn't stupid. She would not betray her war-bonded.  
  
She wanted to speak up and say something but she would not, could not do that to them. She needed them to kill Lucius for her. She would not weaken their position. Lucius would pay for this. Pansy would stay alive to pass along the information they needed. She thought about Blaise and their home together but she couldn't picture it any longer. The future was blank for her, an empty and gray and void place. It should have troubled her but it didn't.  
  
_All our loves get complicated  
Search for pleasure's overrated  
Ever on our souls  
For what the future would hold  
We were innocent  
Innocent_  
  
Wordlessly she watched as Lucius pulled out a sharp knife, the sharpest she had ever seen. And silently she cried to herself as he slit Blaise's throat from ear to ear. The blood seeped out of the cut, his life ebbing quickly away. She watched his eyes begin to dull and then finally glaze over. He was gone. Blaise was just an empty husk. Harry and Draco sent her a wave of strength.  
  
"Still won't talk Pansy?" Lucius asked as though he were telling her that yes, the sky was in fact blue.  
  
"You think it will be that simple Lucius?" She asked sweetly, keeping her air of indifference in tact. "You think I'm that weak? You never really knew me that well, none of you did."  
  
"We'll see what can make you talk," He smiled. "And you will eventually talk."  
  
Pansy kept her tears away. She could not keep away the fear she felt. It almost caused her to start shaking. For once she was glad to have been a Slytherin, raised a Parkinson. Being a Parkinson was almost like being a Malfoy, weakness and emotion just were not shown. The shaking she kept away, just barely but she did.  
  
She watched as Lucius swiped the knife clean on Blaise's leg. She watched as he looked down at her slightly distended belly. And she felt more than fear but she could not speak or blink. Harry and Draco sent her a wave of strength and love. They were still with her. She had almost forgotten.  
  
Lucius magically transferred her until she was lying, bound to a table. She didn't bother to struggle. She didn't have her wand any longer and Lucius was a much stronger wizard than she. There was no point.  
  
_Angels! Lend me your might_  
  
Pansy watched in fascination as Lucius hovered above her with the knife in hand. He carefully cut the front of her robes open. She distinctly heard him mutter something under his breath but she couldn't make out the words. She informed Harry, the slightly more coherent of the two, that Lucius was performing some kind of spell.  
  
And then the knife bit into her flesh. It felt like hot fire was burning her alive. She arched slightly, or tried to, to get away from the blade. Lucius laughed and instantly she stilled.  
  
Together, Draco and Harry assured her they were there with her, she wasn't alone. She calmed.  
  
Precisely Lucius cut into her womb. She knew, had known when he had looked at her belly, that he would kill her baby before he killed her. Pansy wanted to tell him to stop, wanted to betray the others if he would spare her baby. But she wouldn't allow herself to give into that weakness. Harry and Draco were her brothers, they were her war bonded. She owed them to remain silent, she owed it to Blaise to remain silent and to her unborn baby.  
  
Sadly she remembered that she didn't even know if it was a boy or a girl. She wanted a little girl, she wanted one to dress up and to love. To teach her to dance and be a proper hostess. A smart little girl with black hair and blue eyes like her own. She was going to have a little girl named Teresa Carmelina. A little bouncy baby girl named Teresa.  
  
_Forfit__ all my lies  
But get just one right_  
  
She watched and saw, almost as though she was detached from everything around her, as Lucius lifted the most fragile thing she had ever seen in her life out of her womb. She felt strangely empty. Everything on it was perfectly formed, all the fingers were there but it wasn't moving anymore.  
  
'Why isn't it moving anymore Harry?' She spoke to him. 'What happened to my baby Teresa?'  
  
'Lucius killed her Pansy,' Harry's vioce was in her ears and she could tell he was crying.  
  
'Why are you crying Harry?' She asked him. 'I'm going to have a baby and name him Gerick.'  
  
'I love you Pansy,' He sent back to her. 'Draco loves you too.'  
  
She looked around the room and noticed that the lights were dimmed. Lucius was dimmed to but she forced her eyes open. She borrowed the energy from Draco and Harry to stay awake. There was something she had to do, she just couldn't remember what it was. There was something that Pansy had to tell them that Lucius was up to.  
  
"This isn't just for revenge Pansy-dear," She heard Lucius explaining to her. "I need your blood, your husbands blood, and the babies blood. You should be honored to be serving our Lord Pansy."  
  
"I hate you," Pansy choked out. "Give me back my baby."  
  
_All those colors long since faded  
And all our smiles get confiscated  
Never were we told we'd be bought and sold  
We were innocent  
Yeah....._  
  
"Certainly my dear," Lucius smirked at her.   
  
He placed the dead and broken body back within her. Pansy noticed that it didn't feel the same. Her baby was dead. Lucius had murdered her baby. She wanted him dead, oh how she wanted him dead.  
  
'One of you kill him for me,' Pansy said to Harry. 'I want the bastard to hurt!'  
  
'He will Pansy,' Harry said, almost like a whisper in her ear. 'We'll avenge your baby. We'll avenge you and Blaise. We'll make them all pay.'  
  
A wave of love came to her from Draco, so strong that she was gasping from it. She turned back to Lucius watching him intently, still hanging onto consciousness and life. Pansy knew that he was using a spell that the others needed to know about. She would not let them down, not her brothers and sister in arms. She would see that they had every bit of knowledge she could glean from Lucius before she died. They would need it if they were to kill him and Voldemort.  
  
Anger burned through her veins. She wished she could see him dead but this was just as good.  
  
"I didn't expect this of you Pansy," Lucius said conversationally. "I thought for sure you would plead with me to save your baby or yourself."  
  
"I'm not weak like you," Pansy's winter eyes locked onto his face.  
  
"Merely stupid," Lucius agreed.  
  
"Yes, like you," Pansy confirmed.  
  
Lucius laughed darkly. The sound of his laughter sent small shivers down her spine which she carefully hid.  
  
She hurt so much. She was broken and torn apart, literally and figuratively. Pansy knew that she would die here. She would die where Blaise and her baby had died before her. And then they would all be together again. It was a small thought but it brought her some small measure of comfort.  
  
'Please,' She prayed. 'Let me make it through this. Let me make it until they can know what he's doing here. And let them kill him and Voldemort. That's all I'm asking. Those lives in return for three.'  
  
Lucius deserved to die for her baby. Voldemort deserved to die for sending Lucius out to kill her baby.  
  
_Yeah! This prayer  
Is for me tonight  
Let's find out that line  
But still it ain't gotta lie_  
  
"I hope it hurts when you die," Pansy whispered past the blood seeping into her throat.  
  
Lucius didn't answer. He cut deeply just under her breasts, up into them. It hurt and she couldn't hold back in the small cry of pain and surprise. But Lucius went about his work precisely and with a heavy look of concentration.  
  
He took the blood upon his fingertips and for the first time Pansy noticed that he had been drawing something upon the wall. She let her head fall in that direction and made sure that Harry was still 'seeing' what she was looking at.  
  
'I'm here Pansy,' He told her. 'All of us love you, Hermione loves you. I love you. Draco loves you. Blaise loved you.'  
  
She kept herself conscious. She owed it to her remaining war-bonded, her family. Pansy had to give them everything they could get from her to win. She was willing to give it all to them.  
  
She watched patiently as Lucius continued making the symbols and listened to his carefully chanted words. Pansy didn't understand any of it. But hopefully the information she had given to Draco and Harry would be enough that together with Hermione they would be able to figure it out without her help.  
  
"You're going to lose," Pansy rasped, feeling the exquiste feeling of her life draining slowly from her. "Your Master will fall in the final battle, never to rise again. And you'll die Lucius. And it will hurt you as much as it hurt me."  
  
"Believe that if it helps you pass on Pansy-child," Lucius said quietly.  
  
'We love you Pansy,' She heard both Draco and Harry in her head.  
  
Her winter blue eyes looked to the wall and she made sure to send the symbols to Harry. She turned one last time and trained her cold gaze on Lucius Malfoy. She sent his face to Harry as well.  
  
_No, and what confessions already instated  
What accent is contemplated  
Never did we know what the future would hold  
Or that we'd be bought and sold_  
  
Pansy let out one last breath. There was no reason to try any longer. Blaise and the baby were dead. She had done everything she could for Harry, Draco and Hermione. It was her turn to rest with Blaise and the baby.  
  
She took comfort knowing that Lucius Malfoy would die. And Pansy Parkinson died with all her dreams. She'd been sold and bought for her blood. But there was no more pain, no more laughter. For some reason Pansy felt sad when she finally expired and she couldn't understand why.  
  
_No.......  
We were innocent  
Innocent  
We were innocent_


	5. Darkness Still Breaths

I look at Harry now. It's been a year since the final battle. Fleur is the only one who still really talks to me about anything. She and Harry are close but nothing's happened between them. She thinks that he's to scarred by what he's been through to be with anyone. I think it's a load of bull! He went through the same damn battle we all did. Why does he get to be so damn special?  
  
He lives at Malfoy Manner with Hermione and Draco and their precious son. I thought Hermione was smarter than that to end up marrying a Slytherin but especially a Malfoy. He'll go down the same path his daddy did. I know it.  
  
Harry won't let me talk about them. He can't stand to have anything said against precious Draco. It makes me sick. The Boy Who Lived, my former best friend, doesn't even see that he's fallen in with the bad crowd. He said that he'd never forgive Malfoy and now he's living under the same roof as him! I tell you it's revolting.  
  
_Yeah, betrayl stings like sharp needles  
and love falls away like a wilting flower_  
  
Flashback to 7th Year  
  
"Hey Harry," Ron called out to his best friend. "Let's go play some Wizard's chess! Otherwise Hermione will find us and make us do some more revising."  
  
"Can't Ron," Harry shook his head, black hair falling briefly into his eyes. "I'm meeting someone. How about later?"  
  
"Sure," Ron nodded. "Later."  
  
He disappeared around the corner but didn't go back to Gryffindor Tower. He waited instead to see who Harry was meeting. He almost exposed himself when he spotted Malfoy and Zabini walking towards his friend. But the way Harry greeted them made him freeze. He was actually sounding friendly with them, but that didn't make sense.  
  
"So Harry," Blaise said. "Are you ready for some more Potions?"  
  
"Of course," Harry smiled at the Slytherin. "And Draco's always ready to suck up to Snape."  
  
"You're already starting to do better than I am Potter," Draco shook his head. "How can you pretend to be so bad in class Harry? That would just kill me. You even manage to be bad enough that he still takes points away just like he used to."  
  
"We can't have anyone knowing about this Malfoy," Harry playfully punched him in the upper arm. "Our special training has to stay under wraps otherwise our plan to get Voldemort for good will fail."  
  
"We'll let's get going mate," Draco said heading towards the dungeons stairs. "Or Snape will have our heads."  
  
"Where's Pansy?" Blaise asked them.  
  
"She and Hermione should already be down there," Draco answered.  
  
"How would you know Draco?" Harry asked with a grin.  
  
"I was with her about fifteen minutes ago in the library if you must know," Draco smirked. "She and Pansy were looking something up. I didn't want to know what."  
  
End Flashback  
  
Oh yes, they were all such good friends in a matter of months. They were always sticking up for one another in the halls and soon enough everyone stayed out of their way. In the last month those five had two free periods for studying. Of course they used the Great Hall or some other classroom and mostly they were always together. I should have known back then but I didn't want to see.  
  
_But your heart's still beating underneath the pain  
Your blood still flows in all the veins  
It still don't mean your really alive_  
  
Even now Harry doesn't trust me. Not the way he trusts Hermione and Draco. Fluer said that Harry was getting colder with outsiders. She lives in Hogsmeade and goes up to see the three of them twice a week for dinner. She used to spend the weekends up there but they don't want her there anymore.  
  
Maybe they found out that she's been feeding me information. It doesn't matter, I know what I want. I know that I have to take Harry out, and every last one of them before they can come against us. And failing that I need to make the rest of them see, show them all what those three are capable of.  
  
They all have to see the truth. I can bring it to them. I can show them what Harry Potter, the new Dark Lord is capable of! They will all see what I didn't want to see! They will all bear his mark.  
  
Why else would Harry be living at Malfoy's? Why else would Malfoy want him there? Because Harry has part of Voldemort, Harry has power and together that can mean a new Dark Lord.  
  
_Darkness can spread throughout your system  
Like a cancer it can take control  
But you still can't see what's really out there  
Amidst the darkness of your soul you're blinded by reality  
And life will only make you lose control_  
  
"Oh, hello Fluer," Ron turned to the French woman who was also part Veela. "What's the matter? You look so down."  
  
"It's Harry again," Fluer sighed. "I don't want to trouble you."  
  
"It's no trouble," Ron assured her, his eyes glinting. "What's wrong?"  
  
"Harry's gay!" Fluer suddenly wailed. "And, I should have known. I mean, every weekend Severus has been coming to the Manor and now he comes over every night through a special system Dumbledore has set up."  
  
"There, there," Ron said consolelingly. "It'll all work itself out, I'm sure. I'm sorry that he hurt you Fluer."  
  
"He never said or did anything that showed he was interested in me," Fluer hung her head sadly. "I should have known, I just didn't want to see."  
  
"I didn't want to see it either," Ron said patting her on the back as she cried softly. "Harry's beyond our help now. We have to accept that. He's gone over to the other side. What are you going to do?"  
  
"Go back to France," Fluer lifted a tear stained face.  
  
"That would probably be best for now," Ron agreed. "When are you leaving?"  
  
"In a few more minutes," Fluer said. "I just came to say goodbye and thank you for always being here for me Ron. You've been such a good friend."  
  
"Thank you for trusting me Fluer," Ron smiled. "And you can come back any time you want to visit me. I'll be happy to see you."  
  
"Au Revior Ron," Fluer gave him one last hug.  
  
"Good bye Fluer," Ron returned the hug and then led her to the door of his flat. "Until we meet again."  
  
He opened the door for her and watched her leave.  
  
She really was a beautiful girl. Too bad that he couldn't use someone like her yet in his plans. Perhaps later on she might come in useful.  
  
Ron turned back around and stepped into his study. Two figures stood waiting for him. They bowed low and groveled when he entered the room.  
  
"Now," Ron seated himself and they resumed sitting on the floor. "Where were we?"  
  
_You're gonna take back what you're owed  
Make everyone pay more than you've told  
And you're never gonna stop beating them to the ground_  
  
I'll get you Harry Potter, you and all your little friends. You owed me and you never paid. You dropped me as soon as someone better came along. But I can seek revenge just like anyone else and I'll make all of you pay.  
  
_Twisted  
It's what you are  
Twisted  
It's all you're ever gonna be  
  
And all around you they fall to their knees  
But it's only the sick who do as they please  
Only the weak come to you to serve  
Power begets power and life begets life  
So please show me what you're thinking of  
Please tell me of your life  
  
Fire can burn you whole  
It can consume every bit of your soul  
But you still can't see what's really out there  
Amidst the bright light you're blinded by every insecurity and fantasy  
And life will only make you lose control  
  
And all around you they fall to their knees  
But it's only the sick who do as they please  
The stupid will come to serve  
Brilliance begets brillance and death begets death  
So please show me what you're planning  
Please let me feel what you're lacking_


	6. Fatalistic Curses

Lucius Malfoy was a loyal servant to his lord. Mostly because he had Pettigrew and others watching his every move because most of the other Death Eaters coveted his position as having the most power. Many were mistaken into believing that it was Pettigrew who held this position but it was not. Lucius had more power, he was smarter, more charismatic and therefore Voldemort gave him a little more lee-way for failure and with that came more opportunities to make up those failures. Pettigrew was more trusted but he also had a much shorter leash. And Lucius was not a lapdog.  
  
So Lucius always had to make sure that his position was not contested by the likes of Pettigrew or MacNair. He did as he was told and he did more than that when he felt up to it. He was a perfect tool. Even Voldemort said so.  
  
During his son's seventh year Lucius was surprised to hear rumors that Draco was defecting. At first he didn't believe this but when his son didn't come home over Winter Hols, when he was supposed to begin indoctrination to recieve his Dark Mark over the summer, Lucius was not happy. In fact he was downright pissed. And then came the boiling point.  
  
His perfect son sent a chilling letter informing his father that he was joining forces with Potter of all people.  
  
'What utter stupidity,' Lucius shook his head. 'And what a waste of a son. That boy Potter doesn't have the knowledge or power to defeat my Master.'  
  
And so the months went. They tried to get another spy to infiltrate Hogwarts besides Snape but it never worked. And it was true, Snape was watched like a hawk at Hogwarts, by none other than Dumbledore himself. And he wasn't the only one watching either. It was no wonder that Snape couldn't get very good information.  
  
Fortunately there came a break a few years later. Almost four years since his son's betrayl.  
  
"Master," Lucius bowed low, on his knees before Voldemort. "You sent for me Master?"  
  
"I did Luciussss," Voldemort hissed putting a cold hand and drawing up Lucius' head. "I have a task for you my perfect one. I task you must not fail in. Will you do this for me Luciussss?"  
  
"Of course my Lord," Lucius drew his gaze to the floor for the perfect amount of time before looking back up. "It would be an honor to serve you in so important a task my Lord. Will you speak of it to me now? Or will it have to wait until we are alone Master?"  
  
Yes, Lucius was very good at placating his Master with all the right phrases. And he was even better at complying to orders. Betraying Voldemort rarely crossed his mind and when it did he only had to think of Kakaroff or the loss of his position in Wizarding society to immediately stop thinking of it.  
  
"No Luciussss," Voldemort moved and sat in his makeshift throne. "I will tell you of my plan now. You are familiar with the ancient curse and protection spell of the far east are you not Luccciuss?"  
  
"I am my Lord," Lucius sat back on his heels. "Only because in your wisdom you instructed me to learn it."  
  
"Yes," Voldemort eyed him carefully. "I did. I want you to use it now Lucius. Very soon."  
  
"Who shall be the sacrifice my Lord?" He asked keeping his face blank.  
  
"The Parkinson girl and her unborn offspring," Voldemort smiled. "Her husbands parents have recently joined our fold. They will have them over for the Winter break. Kill her. If the boy causes any problems kill him as well."  
  
"Yes my Lord," Lucius bowed. "Will that be all Master?"  
  
"Yes Luciussss," Voldemort nodded. "Go and prepare. Come back once you have completed your task."  
  
Lucius nodded and left.  
  
Over the next month he cleansed his body and began practicing the ancient runes he would be using. It was a complicated two part spell, one curse and one protection. The protection would of course go to his Lord, and then who would be able to stop him?  
  
Lucius did as he was told. He killed Blaise because he made too much of a fuss. And he performed the spell as exact as it could be done. Voldemort was pleased. And that meant that Lucius was secure within the group of Death Eaters.  
  
Lucius and his Master also believed that having two of their little group dead would make the Boy Who Lived weaker. They were after all more willing to kill then he was, more willing to do anything dark and cruel and that made them stronger, people to be feared. But his son was weak. Dark was stronger than Light. Light could be swallow by Dark while within Light the Darkness merely hid.  
  
And soon the final battle began. He saw his Master cut down with a single curse from the Boy Who Lived, now the Man Who Killed Voldemort. And he fought his son.  
  
It should not have surprised him so much. His son defeated him with an ancient German curse, something he had picked up from his extra hours of practice no doubt. But he had expected Draco to kill him right away. Instead he felt himself lingering, slowly ebbing away. And then Draco spoke. And Lucius understood. He understood that the Darkness could in fact be killed. And he gave his son his blessing, what else could he do? His body was dying, he might as well do something for his perfect copy. But then he did something he never thought he would do. Lucius asked his son to forgive him.  
  
And Draco did. But Lucius and Draco both knew that the hate was still there, that the hate would not go away even if forgiveness had been granted.  
  
And then he died.  
  
It was fitting that he die in the end, that he die in pain and suffering and guilt and pride. After all, had he not killed Blaise just to prove a point to Pansy? No matter what he told himself that's really what it came down to. and had he not killed Pansy merely because he was too chickenshit to go against his Master and his precious position and power? Because really that's what it came down to. And had he not killed an innocent child not even born? That had only been done because he had thought that innocence did not belong in the world, and he was wrong again.  
  
In everything that mattered he was wrong.  
  
It was only the fatalistic curses that mattered. Only the curses that killed. And he had found his curse and his salvation at the same time.


End file.
